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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWK - June 23, 2015ANLb Y O F 6 1685 CROSSTOWN BOULLVAKU N.W. • ANUOVtK, MINNESOTA 55304 • (763) 755 -5100 FAX (763) 755 -8923 • WWW.ANDOVERMN.GOV City Council Workshop Tuesday, June 23, 2015 Conference Rooms A & B 1. Call to Order — 6:00 p.m. 2. Joint Meeting with Planning & Zoning Commission - Planning a) Subordinate Classroom Structures 3. Discuss No Parking & Bike Route Signs/Woodland Estates Area - Engineering 4. Approve Quote/Recycling Center Driveway Paving/ /12 -34 - Engineering S. 2016 Budget Development Discussion - Administration 6 2015 General Fund Budget Progress Report -Administration 7. 2015 -2016 Strategic Plan/Goal Setting Discussion -Administration 8. May 2015 City Investments Review - Administration 9. Other Business 10. Adjournment 0 �• ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP MEETING — JUNE 23, 2015 MINUTES The Workshop Meeting of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Julie Trude, June 23, 2015, 6:00 p.m., at the Andover City Hall, 1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota. Councilmembers present: Mike Knight, Sheri Bukkila, Valerie Holthus and James Goodrich Councilmember absent: None Commission present: Chairperson Dean Daninger, Commissioners Timothy Cleven, Lynae Gudmundson, Bert Koehler IV, Kyle Nemeth, Steve Peterson Commissioner absent: Commissioner Jeff Simms Also present: City Administrator, Jim Dickinson Community Development Director, Dave Carlberg Public Works Director /City Engineer, David Berkowitz Others JOINT MEETING WITH PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION Mayor Trude stated the Council thought the Planning and Zoning Commission work has been excellent this year. Councilmember Goodrich thought the Planning and Zoning Commission was doing a terrific job and asked lots of questions he would not generally think of and he felt a lot of the work was done on applications before it reached the Council which was great. He appreciated the great job they were doing. Chairperson Daninger thought the Commission wanted to know logistically how the Council saw the Commission. He stated the Commission wants to hear the residents come at them with questions and comments about items they are reviewing. Commissioner Koehler stated he sees the vote come up on items and if it is unexpected or a couple of commissioners cast dissenting votes, that will get him digging into exactly what is going on. He stated by watching what the City Council has done previously gives him a tool to use to ask new questions with new items that come before them which in turn helps them to get more on the table, when they understand some of the rationale and see some of the arguments the Council use, it becomes a teaching moment for them. He stated seeing that kind of interaction really pays off. 0 Councilmember Bukkila arrived at 6:06 p.m. Mayor Trude thought sometimes it seemed like the Planning and Zoning Commission does not have all of the information that is provided to the Council. Councilmember Holthus thought the © Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes — June 23, 2015 Page 2 residents feel more comfortable talking to the Planning and Zoning Commission then to the Council. Commissioner Peterson stated he liked how Mr. Carlberg summarizes what has happened at the City Council meeting at the end of the Planning and Zoning meetings. He thought this really helped the Commission. Mayor Trade thought Mr. Carlberg ran a good department. She suggested the Commissioners go out to the sites that are going to be discussed if they can because it is really helpful. Mayor Trade stated looking ahead they have the Comprehensive Plan review and she wondered if the Planning and Zoning Commission thought they should have some public hearings to open it up a little more. Last time there was not any public hearings because they just did some fine tuning and no change was going to happen. Chairperson Daninger stated what he liked is having a worksession on items at 6:00 p.m. before their meetings to be able to openly discuss and brainstorm ideas. He thought there should still be discussion and public hearings at the meetings to involve residents also. He found it more fruitful to have worksessions and then bring the items back to the public. Mr. Carlberg stated there were a couple of ways of doing this, they could create a task force with people from each Commission to review the Comprehensive Plan and then come back to the Council with ideas or they could have work sessions where they go through the Comprehensive Plan chapter by chapter and eventually have public hearings for proposed changes. They could also have an open house to show the residents of possible changes and this can be discussed further in the coming months. Mayor Trade indicated it was important to her to involve the community and get their feedback. Councilmember Bukkila thought the Planning and Zoning Commission was productive and good discussion was going on between the Commissioners. Councilmember Holthus stated she would like to see the Commission verbalize more to the builders on Planned Unit Developments (PUD). Mayor Trade thought it may be a good subject for a worksession to make a list of ideas they would like to see in a PUD. The City Council and Planning and Zoning Commission discussed how they should review PUD's. Councilmember Bukkila indicated she liked it when the Planning and Zoning Commission had mixed votes and she did not need to always see unanimous votes with the Commission. Commissioner Nemeth thought they needed flexibility to make a good decision. He did not want the Planning and Zoning Commission to only look at one thing; they need to have the option to look at multiple angles. Mayor Trade stated staff usually gives the developer options and they decide what they want to put into the plan for the Council to review. Commissioner Koehler stated he would like the Council to give the Commission more feedback and he would appreciate hearing from the City Council on how the Commission can improve or what types of questions they should be asking. © Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes — June 23, 2015 Page 3 a. Subordinate Classroom Structures Mr. Carlberg explained the Commission felt a lot of the subordinate structures keep getting approved and are becoming more permanent than temporary. Mr. Carlberg reviewed the history and the issues surrounding subordinate classrooms with the Council and Commission. Commissioner Nemeth stated he would like the Commission and Council to think about at what point in time do these subordinate buildings not become temporary structures anymore. Some are landscaped and have sidewalks leading up to them. They are actually an integrated part of the building itself. It seems like many of these structures keep getting approved. Councilmember Bukkila stated she looks at these structures as an answer to temporary population increases and decreases for the schools /churches. Mr. Carlberg stated what he sees is there is no long term plan from the churches. He stated these buildings are supposed to be short-term but when asked, the churches do not have a five year © plan, they just keep asking for approvals over and over again. He wondered if they need to push harder on the timeframes and removal of the structures. Mayor Trude stated she would like to have the Council discuss this further at a workshop and she wants to be gracious to their church community and maybe have discussion with the church leaders. Councilmember Bukkila stated she would like to have the Commission review this and come back to the Council with their ideas. Commissioner Daninger stated the Commission was looking for direction from the Council. Councilmember Goodrich stated he would like to know how many subordinate structures there are in the City, be consistent, if there are any structures that are an eyesore or if there are any health issues involved. He thought some sort of criteria should be set up. He stated he wants to be consistent and have a solid plan in place. Councilmember Holthus thought the structures needed to be used for its intended purpose and not for storage areas. The Planning and Zoning Commissioners left at 6:59 p.m. Motion by Knight, seconded by Bukkila to add supplemental information to Item 3. Motion carried unanimously. DISCUSS NO PARKING & BIKE ROUTE SIGNSIWOODLAND ESTATES AREA Mr. Berkowitz explained the City Council is requested to discuss the no parking/bike route in the Woodland Estates development area. © Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes —June 23, 2015 Page 4 Mayor Trude stated since the letters went out she had received some calls from residents questioning how this is going to be enforced. Mr. Berkowitz stated there should be no selective enforcement on this because of the bike path. He stated they have not pushed law enforcement to ticket in this area. He indicated the City has told the Sheriff's Department to ease back until this item is cleared up. Mr. Berkowitz reviewed the history of the area and where the bike path is located with the Council. Councilmember Holthus thought the block between Raven Street and Crosstown Boulevard, along 1491h Avenue, would be where a lot of kids would park during the day. Ms. Kathy Lucci, 2145 149th Avenue, stated she did not realize that the area would be approved for high school parking. A lot of the residents were confused by the different mailings that were sent out. Mr. Berkowitz stated where the confusion came in, is the latest document is a standalone document and things have changed since the initial discussion. If left as is, he stated there would be no parking signs along 149th Avenue. © Mr. Berkowitz showed on the map where no parking signs would be displayed. Mr. Darren McDonald, 2154 149th Avenue, stated they received the first mailing map and it shows a proposed no parking area in pink which is only a small area on 149th Avenue and their concern is regarding parking on 149th Avenue. Ms. Lucci thought there was a lot of confusion within the neighborhood and inconsistency. She stated they are trying to protect their property from the high school parking but that is not clear on how the communication came out. Councilmember Knight thought they should take the bike route out of the equation and only deal with the parking. Councilmember Bukkila stated she would like to stay consistent throughout the City with parking around the schools. She thought they should post 149th Avenue as no parking during school activities and parking would be allowed throughout the rest of the neighborhood. There would no longer be a bike route with restricted parking along 149th Avenue. Councilmember Holthus agreed. Mayor Trude was in favor of removing the bike route. Councilmember Goodrich stated that seemed to be the best thing to do. Mr. McDonald thought that was what the people in the neighborhood expected and hoped the City would do. The Council discussed with staff on how they can post the no parking during school activities. Mr. McDonald stated his concern is with parking on the street and speeding of cars on the street with small children in the area. Mr. Berkowitz reviewed the process the City uses to monitor ® Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes — June 23, 2015 Page 5 speeding in a neighborhood. He indicated he would have his department put out a traffic counter cord on their block. APPROVE QUOTE /RECYCLING CENTER DRIVE WAYPAVING /12 -34 Mr. Berkowitz explained the City Council is requested to approve the quote to pave the driveway entrance to the Recycle Center from Crosstown Boulevard to the facility, Project 12 -34. Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Holthus, to award the contract to Northern Asphalt, Inc. in the amount of $27,958.00 for paving the driveway entrance for the Recycling Center from Crosstown Boulevard to the facility, Project 12 -34. Motion carried unanimously. 2016 BUDGET DEVELOPMENT DISCUSSION Mr. Dickinson explained city administration is starting to focus on the 2016 Annual Operating Budget development process and is looking for City Council direction as the preparation of the 2016 Annual Operating Budget proceeds. QMr. Dickinson reviewed the staff report with the Council. Councilmember Holthus asked if the operations were looking gradually better because their debt is going down. Mr. Dickinson stated debt does not have much to do with operations performance the City uses a different financial model when looking at using debt to finance projects and equipment. Councilmember Knight looking at the 10 year city financial pro forma asked what they were projecting for growth into 2016. Mr. Dickinson stated on the expenditure side he has not seen all of the department numbers but one thing that is embedded in the total on the expenditure side is public safety. This has usually had a 3.5% escalator which they have found out is too high for 2016. He stated for 2016 they are presenting a.16% increase for law enforcement but if they had to get into cost cutting they would have to look at the big ticket items, one of which is the Sheriff's contract. Mr. Dickinson reviewed in detail the debt service and general fund levy projections with the Council. Mr. Dickinson stated there will be a few new staffing requests from the Fire, Public Works and Building Departments. They are having daytime staffing problems with the Fire Department and will be looking to add a couple of part time people through a concept called duty- crews. Public Works is seeking assistance for street maintenance and for the Building Department with development and building activity being fairly robust at this time assistance with inspections will likely be needed. They are looking at sharing a position with another community to cost share and would be reviewed annually to make sure the person is equally shared. There are also Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes — June 23, 2015 Page 6 anticipated retirements in the next few years and there will need to be a focus on appropriate succession planning. Mr. Dickinson reviewed Human Resource issues with the Council. Councilmember Goodrich asked if the City was getting reimbursed for the School Liaison. Mr. Dickinson indicated they are not getting reimbursed one hundred percent for the position. Councilmember Goodrich wondered why the City is paying for School Liaison officers and not the School District. Mr. Dickinson stated the school utilizes a certain dollar amount and they allocate a certain percent to pay for school liaisons district wide. They pay for approximately sixty percent of the position and the City pays for the other forty percent. He stated the School District and the City both benefit from the presence in the schools. Councilmember Holthus stated the School Liaison is busy from the moment they get there to the moment they leave. Mayor Trude thought the reasoning behind the split was because the School Liaison prevents crimes from happening in and out of school by being there they are stopping the crimes from occurring. Councilmember Bukkila thought maybe the Council should be seeing some statistical information for the School Liaison from the Sheriff's Department. Mr. Dickinson indicated that could be done. Councilmember Knight stated a lot of the school liaison officers are for crime prevention. Mr. Dickinson reviewed the City contributions and memberships with representative organizations with the Council. Mr. Dickinson stated they are proposing an 18.6% increase from 2015 in the Road and Bridge fund to get caught up because he felt the road infrastructure is one of the most important things to maintain. He stated the percentage could certainly be lower but he felt this was important to start at this level. The pedestrian trail maintenance is $61,838 which is a 6.1% increase over 2015. The 2015 levy for park improvements is $61,500 which is what is being proposed for 2016. He noted for 2016 he is proposing $250,000 for equipment/projects. Mr. Dickinson wondered if there is anything in the Capital Projects Levy that the Council would want staff to focus on. Mayor Trude thought the trail fund needed to be included in this because that is the number one thing the residents talked about during last year's campaigning and it was covered in the City survey. Councilmember Holthus thought the trail fund would be in the transportation budget, not in the park improvements budget. Mr. Dickinson stated the trail fee is for the regional trail system. Councilmember Bukkila stated she would like to see park maintenance budget focused on specifically what they need to do to that budget to keep up. Councilmember Knight stated the demand for ball fields is increasing also. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes — June 23, 2015 Page 7 The Council discussed the parks maintenance plan and what is included in it. Mayor Trade asked if the trail system will fit into transportation. Mr. Dickinson stated trails will be listed separately in the CIP, the Council could allocate additional funding to the trails. Mr. Dickinson asked if the Council wants to dedicate forecasted fund balance over council guidelines to a one time funding for projects or should they hold them in reserve. Majority of the Council indicated they would like the funds held until specific projects can be identified. Mr. Dickinson stated they cannot refinance the existing debt and he stated with an estimated balance available for one time improvements, he wondered what the Council would like to look at specifically. Mayor Trade indicated she would like to see it used for trails. Councilmember Bukkila stated she would like to keep it in reserve until they complete the CIP and budget process. 2015 GENERAL FUND BUDGET PROGRESS REPORT Mr. Dickinson stated the City of Andover 2015 General Fund Budget contains total revenues of $9,876,575 and total expenditures of $10,364,730 (includes $26,000 of 2014 budget carry © forward); a decrease in fund balance is planned. Mr. Dickinson reviewed the May 2015 General Fund Budget Progress report with the Council. Mayor Trade stated on the Parks CIP, the Council wants to make sure they do some fencing on Pine Hills North Park to protect the fields and she wondered if Mr. Haas could talk to them to find out if they can really do two big park projects back to back because they are still working on Pine Hills North Park. She stated they still have a lot of stuff going. Mr. Dickinson indicated the irrigation projects are a little different than constructing a park. Timber Trails Park is set up and does not need a detailed engineer plan. Fox Meadows needs a lot of planning and engineering so by staggering projects and putting Fox Meadows second behind Timber Trails allows staff the ability to get both done. 2015 -2016 STRATEGIC PLAN /GOAL SETTING DISCUSSION Mr. Dickinson explained at the April 28, 2015 City Council Workshop, city administration facilitated the start of the 2015 -2016 Strategic Plan/Goal Setting discussion with the City Council. At the May 26, 2015 City Council Workshop, city administration reviewed with the Council the input from the April session and reviewed how that discussion was integrated into a strikethrough/underline of a previously adopted Council Community Vision and Organizational Goals and Values document. Mr. Dickinson reviewed the current draft Council Community Vision and Organizational Goals and Values document with the Council, specifically Council submitted suggested changes. 1. Fiscal Goals Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes —June 23, 2015 Page 8 Item C. The Council wanted to add the new red wording. Item D. The Council liked the red wording, delete the black. Item F. The Council wanted to delete Item F and replace it with Item H. Item I. This was added to the goals. 2. Commercial /Residential Development/Development Goals Item B. The Council indicated to delete and replace with Item C. Item J. The Council agreed with adding the new wording. Item K. The Council wanted to leave out the red wording. Item L. The Council indicated to remove the black wording and add the red wording. 3. Collaboration Goals Item B. The Council felt the changes were ok. Item E. The Council asked Mr. Dickinson to wordsmith this item before final approval. Item H. The Council indicated to keep the new wording. © 4. Service Delivery Goals Item F. The Council like the re- written sentence: "Commit to providing the public with effective Public Safety through Fire and Law Enforcement Service programs ". Item L. The Council requested staff to remove the wording after the comma. Item M. The Council thought the change was ok. Item N. The Council felt this item was ok as changed. 5. Livability /Image Goals Item C. The Council was ok with the change. Item J. The Council indicated to remove the red "s ". MAY 2015 CITY INVES TMENTS RE VIE W Mr. Dickinson reviewed the May 2015 City Investments with the Council. OTHER TOPICS a. Permit ® Mayor Trude stated there is a business person in town, an Edward Jones salesperson and he talked to her about their solicitor permitting. He told her he has to go to the City every thirty days to renew his permit and pay a fee. She did not know this and asked if the Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes —June 23, 2015 Page 9 Council would support being more business friendly to people who have a business in the City. Mr. Dickinson stated when they go door to door they are identified as a solicitor and what is done with a permit application is a background check but he would check into this. The Council would like this reviewed because they felt thirty days was too frequent. b. Advertising in City Parks Mr. Dickinson stated this item has to do with advertising in City parks on the fences. He stated they have a policy that allows the Associations to work with local businesses to put banners on fields. They have a fee at the Community Center for $350 for 12 months. He stated one of the Associations is charging $1,100 for six months of advertising on the outdoor fencing, he has recently received complaints that the Associations advertising amounts are excessive. He wondered if the Council would want staff to set fees or should they take the advertising in- house. He stated the City Council put this in the motion about 3 years ago. Mr. Dickinson stated the City receives ten percent from the Associations for the advertising. Mayor Trude asked where the rest of the money was going because it was her understanding that it would be put back into the park for improvements from the Associations. Council indicated they would like staff to re- evaluate the policy. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Holthus, to adjourn. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 9:05 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Sue Osbeck, Recording Secretary X